Rating: NNNN
It’s been almost eight years since Stevie Nicks released a solo disc — touring with a reformed Fleetwood Mac is time-consuming work, evidently — and three songs here are previously unrecorded holdovers from the 70s. But Nicks couldn’t have returned with anything better than Trouble In Shangri-La (out Tuesday). Eschewing Welsh witches and other spooky maidens for a grittier lyrical palette drawn from real life (read Lindsey), and collaborating with everyone from Macy Gray to Sheryl Crow, Nicks crafts timeless and relentlessly melodic pop that speaks sharply without being stern. Alternately moody and hopeful, with a revelatory centrepiece track inspired by Tom Petty, Shangri-La never loses steam and never stumbles. This is the Nicks record fans have been awaiting.
